Another Casino Proposed For The Bakken -- On Highway 2, Montana, 50 Miles West Of Williston, Ft Peck Reservation -- March 25, 2015

Back on December 19, 2014, I posted a link to a PDF document suggesting a new casino in North Dakota, southwest of Williston was announced:

Dave Blue, Economic Development for Turtle Mountains in attendance today to explain that the tribe has purchased some Indian Trust Land and will be building a casino west of Williston east and south of Stat Oil.

The project will cost approximately $150M.

The project will be in phases and when they start turning dirt Phase I will be completed in 14 months and cost approximately $80M. This casino will be a state of the arts casino with hotel, resort, convention center, restaurant, and outlet mall. They will provide housing for their 300 employees.

They are exempt from building permits or liquor license, but they want to be good neighbors and work in conjunction with the County.

The liquor license will have to be issued by the tribe in Belcourt. They will contact the NDDOT and help with the 4 laning of Highway 2 west. They will have their own law enforcement at first then try and get an agreement with the Sheriff’s Department to assist.

They will also do a small expansion of the casino in Trenton. The grand opening ceremony will take place October 24th beginning at noon and they are inviting the Commission to attend.

Now, The Dickinson Press is reporting another casino in the Bakken, this one on the Montana side of the state line, on US Highway 2, about 50 miles west of Williston:

The Minnesota Indian tribe that owns the popular Mystic Lake Casino Hotel near Shakopee will invest $29 million in a Hi-Line casino on the Fort Peck Reservation in northeast Montana about 40 miles from the North Dakota state line.

The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community agreed earlier this month to loan the $29 million to the Fort Peck Tribes for the $34 million project set to begin June 15.

The casino, to be named the Buffalo Rivers Casino and Lodge, will have a gaming floor with 400 Las Vegas-style gaming machines, a 400-person event center, 150-person buffet, and 75 hotel rooms. The casino will be along Highway 2 near Fort Kipp at the reservation’s easternmost corner. Highway 2 has become a key route for Bakken oil traffic. The Fort Kipp site puts the casino within 53 miles of Williston, the epicenter of the boom.